Prospect Talent Score

Probability of Success

History

2010-11: Jonathan Drouin was the leading scorer for the Lac Saint-Louis Lions midget AAA team in Quebec. Playing alongside Quebec Remparts prospect Anthony Duclair he scored 22 goals with 36 assists and had 38 penalty minutes in 38 regular season games. Drouin scored 11 goals with 17 assists in 15 playoff games. The Lions finished first in the Reebok Division and rolled through the Quebec playoffs; advanching to the Telus Cup national championship. In seven games at the Telus Cup he scored 2 goals with 4 assists and had 12 penalty minutes. He was the second player taken in the 2011 QMJHL Entry Draft behind Nathan MacKinnon; selected by Halifax.

2011-12: Drouin joined the QMJHL’s Halifax Mooseheads in mid-season after starting the year in midget hockey with Lac Saint-Louis, and was Halifax’ second leading scorer in the playoffs behind MacKinnon. In 33 regular season games for Halifax he scored 7 goals with 22 assists and was minus-five with 12 penalty minutes. Drouin played a key role in the Mooseheads’ run to the QMJHL semifinals; scoring 9 goals with 17 assists and finishing plus-six with 4 penalty minutes in 17 games. Prior to joining Halifax he was dominant in Quebec midget AAA play, scoring 22 goals with 31 assists in 22 games. Drouin represented Quebec in the 2011 U17 World Hockey Challenge; scoring 2 goals with 3 assists in four games.

2012-13: Drouin, slowed by injury early in the year, had a breakout season for the Mooseheads and represented Canada in the 2013 World Junior Championship in Ufa. Playing for a dominant Halifax squad that won 58 of 68 games in the regular season, Drouin scored 41 goals with 64 assists and was plus-48 with 32 penalty minutes in 49 games. In Halifax’ first eight playoff games, all wins, he scored 4 goals with 11 assists and was plus-10. He played in six games for Canada, which finished fourth in the WJC, and scored 2 goals with 2 assists and was plus-four. Drouin was rated third among North American skaters in the Central Scouting midterm and final rankings and was selected by Tampa Bay in the first round (third overall) in the 2013 NHL Draft.

2013-14: Drouin signed a three-year entry-level contract with Tampa Bay in July 2013 and attended training camp with the Lightning before being returned to Halifax for his third QMJHL season. He was Canada’s second-leading scorer at the 2014 World Junior Championship in Sweden. Drouin led Halifax in scoring despite missing most of December with an upper-body injury, scoring 29 goals with 79 assists. He was +50 with 43 penalty minutes in 46 regular season games. The Mooseheads finished first in the Maritimes Division and advanced to the playoff semifinals — falling to eventual QMJHL champion Val-d’Or. Drouin scored 13 goals with 28 assists and was +9 with 18 penalty minutes in 16 playoff games. He scored 3 goals with 6 assists, finishing two points behind Anthony Mantha (Detroit) for the team lead, in six games for Canada at the WJC. He was +5 with 24 penalty minutes as Canada finished fourth, losing 2-1 to Russia in the bronze medal game.

2014-15: Drouin made his NHL debut with Tampa Bay in an October 20th game against Edmonton — after missing time with a thumb injury to start the year — and skated in 70 of 82 games for the Lightning as a rookie. He scored 4 goals with 28 assists and was +3 with 34 penalty minutes, averaging 13:14 minutes of ice time. Drouin played two games for Lightning AHL affiliate Syracuse, scoring 1 goal with 23 assists and finishing +4 with no penalties.

Talent Analysis

Drouin is a wizard with the puck who lit up the highlight reels by making fans' jaws drop and opposing defenders look foolish in junior hockey. has magical stickhandling ability with great lower-body strength making it nearly impossible to knock him off the puck. His on-ice vision and an ability to slow the game down makes him a threat both in scoring a goal himself and setting up a teammate with an excellent chance. He has been more of a playmaker than a scorer so far in his NHL career but his production should increase as he gains experience.

Future

Drouin made steady progress with Tampa Bay in his rookie season after being slowed by a thumb injury at the start of the 2014-15 season. Playing in a lower line role on a team with several dynamic scorers he had 28 assists, one less than leading scorer Steven Stamkos. Drouin should continue to improve as he gains experience and matures physically and could be among the league's top forwards in a few years.

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Photo: Selected third overall in the 2013 NHL Draft, forward Jonathan Drouin has established himself as one of the top offensive forwards in junior hockey. The 18-year-old forward currently has 78 points through 37 games in the QMJHL. (courtesy of Frederick Breedon/Getty Images)

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Photo: Finnish forward Henri Ikonen is in the midst of a breakout season with the Kingston Frontenacs. The 19-year-old has 11 goals and 24 assists through 22 games. (courtesy of Aaron Bell/OHL Images)

In recent years the Tampa Bay Lightning have shown a willingness to select players from a variety of leagues. Their prospect pool consists of a group of talented Europeans, intriguing NCAA players, and – because most of their recent CHL selections have turned pro – just six players playing junior hockey.

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Photo: Forward J.T. Brown is one of several Lightning prospects expected to have a strong 2013-14 season. (courtesy of Joel Auerbach/Getty Images)

Tampa Bay Lightning GM Steve Yzerman has done his due diligence through the NHL Draft over the past few years. Many of his first round picks, players such as Brett Connolly, Andrey Vasilevskiy, and Jonathan Drouin, all figure to be big components to the Lightning's success in the future. But it is his later-round picks and shrewd free agent signings that could make a more immediate impact for Tampa Bay.

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Photo: Forward Alex Killorn is one of several young players to make the Lightning’s NHL roster out of training camp. (courtesy of Jeanine Leech/Icon SMI)

With the compliance buyout of long time captain Vincent Lecavalier this off-season, the Tampa Bay Lightning seemed to send a message to everyone that the rebuild was in full swing. The Lightning went into training camp with around five to six spots up for grabs for young players, and many on the Top-20 came away with spots for the opening night roster.